Black River TodayA Rutland Herald blog about
the Black River community.

About Black River

Black River Today is blogged by Ralph Pace who lives in Ludlow with his wife of 49 years, Janet, and a dog named Devi. He enjoys gardening (but not lawns-there's a big difference), skiing (when he can drag himself to the slopes), and editing his personal blog (http://viewfromludlow.blogspot.com) along with this blog. He also cohosts a weekly news TV program on LPC-TV, Channel 8, called "That Was The Week That Was" (TW3). Taped segments of TW3 may be viewed at www.lpctv.org. News, stories, comments, opinion columns and any suggestions dealing with the Black River area and his blog can be sent to ralphpace@tds.net

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Regional

February 19, 2012

Black River Today (BRT)will be moving to a new web site location soon.

The Rutland Herald, sponsor of the BRT blog, is introducing a new blogging site. You may see a test version of the new site by going to www.blackrivertoday.com.

We'll let you know when the new site is formally switched. Among other new features will be the opportunity for you to easily comment on the BRT content. It will also support a much finer level of video.

After many years of working to raise the funds to install an elevator so that people could see the wonders of its three floor collection of area history, Black River Academy Museum (BRAM) is within weeks of seeing that dream become a reality. Pictured above are Jim Lynch and Joe Chistolini, proud members of local 41 in Worcester, MA., as they work on the electrical installation of the new elevator cab at BRAM. The cab, being installed by Baystate Elevator, working with BRAM's general contractor, Wright Construction of Mt Holly, is located in the new wing in the rear of the historic BRAM building. According to Anita Alic, BRAM leader on the elevator installation, "We could not have accomplished the installation of this elevator without the help and support of our many private donors and local businesses. Also, we benefited from the generosity of the Ludlow Enterprise Fund, the VT Cultural Facilities Coalition and the State of Vermont who awarded us a generous $18,000 grant and the Walter Cerf Community Fund. We are planning an 'Elevator Celebration' on Saturday June 2nd, the museum’s opening day for the 2012 season, so mark your calendar." She added that "the installation was delayed from our December 2011 completion date as Bay State was occupied with repairs related to Hurricane Irene damage. We now expect an operable elevator by the end of February." The addition of the elevator will make BRAM fully compliant with ADA-access requirements and offer the opportunity for all the visitors to the museum to view the three floors of exhibits offered by BRAM. Museum Director Georgia Brehm was particularly pleased that the elevator now means that "our area school students will be allowed to see and appreciate the artifacts of the past that have helped shape the present they live in".

February 17, 2012

It’s hard to believe that Vermont had a “nursing home” in 1887 but indeed we did and the first patient was a Civil War soldier who arrived there on May 18th of that year. He was referred to as an inmate at the time rather than a patient but his needs were likely to have been the same as many of today’s residents. The facility is the Vermont Veterans’ Home in Bennington which continues today as a skilled nursing facility. The property before becoming a home for soldiers had been a home for destitute women and children and was a self contained working farm. In its earliest years, one hundred sixty soldiers resided there and it continued as a working farm while soldiers received care there. The numbers are not very different today as the home has 171 beds as well as an eight bed residential care unit.

Persons eligible for admission to the Home are Veterans, their spouses and Gold Star parents from any state with Vermonters receiving preference. Twenty per cent of the patients are from NY state. There are openings and the Home is recruiting in order to meet its budget. The majority of the residents are male and the current average age is 88 years old. Residents are more medically complex than those in privately run nursing homes. The challenges to deal with are a higher rate of alcohol and drug abuse; post traumatic stress disorder; mental health issues as well as behavioral issues including aggressive behaviors. Little or no family involvement places many of the patients at greater risk for a negative outcome also. There are no medical marijuana registered users at the facility as the doctors serving there are federal VA docs and prescribing such would be a violation of federal law. The Home is staffed by 216 state employees. The Alzheimer’s Unit is internationally recognized and respected and can accommodate 77 patients in various stages of dementia. The Home is Medicare and VA certified and is a teaching facility for the VT College of Nursing, Union Univ. Albany College of Pharmacy and the College of St. Joseph and State Univ. NY at Albany Social Work programs. Rooms are either singles or doubles and with the new geo-thermal system that is now up and running (with some costly “glitches” still being ironed out) each room has individual controls for heat and air conditioning. The Home is working toward implementing an electronic medical records system. On another electronic note, a grant was received for IPods for the Music and Memory Program. They are being used as part of a research project to determine if music helps to reduce negative behaviors and the need for psychotropic medications for some dementia patients. And, “Yes”, the Deer Park is still there for those of you who remember visiting it as a child. Consider going again and visiting a Vet you know.

The budget for all this is $19 million. This year with a cut in Medicare funding, the Home is receiving $150,000 less in funds. Medicare reimbursement per day is $327, VT Medicaid is $245, VA for a person with a service connected disability is $337 and a private pay patient is charged $270.

February 13, 2012

At Mount Hollywood Studio in Belmont, more than twenty area musicians have recorded original songs written in response to Tropical Storm Irene. At LPCTV Community access television station in Ludlow, staff has been busy editing photos and videos of the historic and devastating event. The resulting CD and DVD are soon to be packaged together under the title "Irene's Wake" and released at two concerts in Ludlow, February 17th and 18th. The keepsake will then be available at area retailers for $20. Proceeds of all sales will be split between the Vermont Flood Relief Fund and the non-profit LPCTV.

Musicians and bands featured on the commemorative CD include Rick Redington and the Luv, Gypsy Reel, The Pleasants, Victor Paul and Guy Burlage of Seabird, Rick Davis, Dank & the Funksticks, and the Mount Holly Folk Club. “We’ve got rock, funk, folk, bluegrass…,” offered Mount Hollywood Studio's Rod Ferrell who has generously donated countless hours to the project. “It’s an eclectic assortment of good, original songs by some really talented Vermont musicians and songwriters.”

In addition to the CD, the commemorative package will include a DVD of photographs and videos of the storm, its damage, and its effect on Vermonters. The DVD will also feature video clips of recording sessions and interviews with the artists. Songs from the CD will be played on the DVD as well.

To celebrate the release of “Irene’s Wake”, five of the bands featured on the CD are gracing two stages in Ludlow, February 17th and 18th. Mark your calendars! On Friday, February 17th at the Ludlow Town Hall Auditorium: Gypsy Reel, The Pleasants, the Salt Ash Serenaders, along with members of the Mount Holly Folk Club and special guests will be performing from 7:00 – 8:30. In unison with the bands, there will also be a showing of the DVD which commemorates the historical flood as it effected our region. Admission is $10 at the door. On Saturday, February 18th at the Outback Nightclub in Ludlow: the volume will be turned up a notch with Rick Redington and the Luv performing along with Dank & the Funkstix. Music start around 9:00. Admission is $10.

Proceeds from the sale of “Irene’s Wake” and related events will be shared between the Vermont Flood Relief Fund and LPCTV – which is currently raising funds for their new facility at the Ludlow Community Center Campus.

February 12, 2012

Pictured above are four ladies who helped entertain a full house at the Black River Academy Museum (BRAM) this past Saturday as they, along with other members of the cast, supplied appropriate musical numbers to salute Valentine's Day. The four above, from left to right, are Linda Dunworth, Sara Norcross, Aprille Moore and Linda Burns, doing a rather sardonic musical number from Cole Porter's 'Kiss Me Kate' called "I Hate Men".

The rest of the evening, however, reflected more romantic numbers such as Secret Love, Love Me Tender, When I Fall in Love, Old Devil Moon, ending with Get Me to the Church in Time.

The latter was very significant in that, following the musical examination of the statuses of love, an actual wedding did take place. Cast members Linda Burns and Mike Muller were married in the BRAM auditorium by fellow cast member, and Justice of the Peace, Molly Ferris.

Following the musical performance, which was directed by Stephanie Rowe, and the wedding, everyone then enjoyed Valentine desserts prepared by area chefs. They included the Combes Family Inn, Sharon Combes-Farr, Beth Graves-Lombard, David Hoeh, Lisa Schmidt, Georgia Brehm, Linda Tucker and Beth Burlamachi.

February 10, 2012

Myriad reports and studies are received each week on a variety of issues and topics. Many are related to bills that have been introduced or were passed previously and require a report back to see if the bill did what it was intended to do. All aspects of the budget requested by the Governor require reports on what the money requested will be used for and comparisons to past years. An example would be the Buildings and General Services (BGS) budget and their request for the VT Information Centers, better known as rest areas to most people. But, in fact, they are providing marketing and promotion of businesses and attractions in our state to travelers while providing a needed service at the same time.

This past year 3,165,029 visitors were at the centers which are open 365 days per year. Hours were reduced at nine sites in 2009 to save money and 4 sites were closed completely due to budget cuts. However, two new sites will be opening; Hartford on I-91 in 2012 and the Bennington Welcome Center in 2013. Presently the Welcome Center in Guilford draws the most visitors in the state. The center at Sharon with the Viet Nam Memorial is another popular site. It also has a unique composting system with vegetation that can be found in South East Asia. A very expensive issue for the centers is waste disposal as the centers are not on municipal sewer systems and must pump out the waste and transport it to a disposal site. Operating expenses for all the centers in 2011 were $3,891,422 and in 2008 were $4,901,497. They are doing their best to reduce costs while still providing services. The question is always how much can we afford. Public-private partnerships are also being explored to address service voids.

BGS also has a fleet of vehicles that they lease and rent to various state agencies. Some may be interested to know that of the 530 vehicles, 232 are passenger sedans and station wagons and of those, 68 are hybrid vehicles. The report also provided information on charging stations, mileage for vehicles and options for the future. The cost of a charging station is about $10,000 and a number of companies are manufacturing them.

A Senate bill that has generated some interest with the driving public is #244, An Act Relating to Referral to Court Diversion for Driving with a Suspended License. It has been changed a lot since it was introduced but addresses the issue of persons who have failed to pay fines and have lost their license because of the failure to pay. It excludes DUI and other serious offenses. The goal is to collect money and reduce the number of persons suspended. Presently there are 23,000 Vermont licenses suspended just from failure to pay fines. It will be interesting to see how this bill progresses.

February 04, 2012

Education is always a topic that has House and Senate members expressing divergent views while all want the best for the children of our state. The same is true of the general public and this week I heard from those on both sides of the aisle with regard to school choice. On the radar this week was Senate bill 201, An Act Relating to Expanding Public School Choice for Elementary and High School Students. Many of our smaller towns in VT have school choice when they don’t have their own schools and aren’t members of a union. There is also limited public high school choice, up to ten students via agreements between high schools. The money from the state doesn’t follow the student and stays with the sending school. The Senate Ed Committee took testimony on S-201 and heard from residents from Kirby to Barnard to Berkshire to Chester. Principal Craig Hutt Vater of the Mount Holly School also testified and the information he presented was valued by the committee. A measured approach for some expansion of the law seems like it might have some traction but full blown school choice won’t have the votes. It’s hard to tell at this point what this bill will look like after the committee works on it.

Some other bills in the Senate Ed Committee that you might want to check out are: #120, Freedom of expression for students; #194, Consolidation of supervisory unions; #219, A statewide public school teachers contract; #233, (a bill I sponsored), Gradually increasing the mandatory age of school attendance; and #245, Cardiovascular care instruction for secondary students. The cardiovascular bill or CPR bill originally proposed making CPR a high school graduation requirement along with training on difibulators. The committee dropped the graduation requirement but did send the bill to the full Senate for a vote with a requirement in it that high schools “shall” offer the training to every student. The bill had a very strong lobbying effort behind it by the American Heart Association and no one doubted that it would be beneficial for more people to learn CPR and to be familiar with difibulators. However the word “shall” triggered a firestorm of questions from Senators mainly about costs and mandates. The school representatives who spoke to the committee apparently felt the bill should go forward and would not be a burden on schools. A majority of Senators felt differently and viewed it as an unfunded mandate on schools who were already struggling with budgets and mandates. On a voice vote, over the objection of the supporters of the bill, it was ordered, “to lie”. This means that it could be resurrected if supporters thought they had the votes to pass it, or the committee could take it back and make changes to it or it could be dead for the session. Such is the life of someone’s favorite bill.

February 02, 2012

The Black River Academy Museum will host a well-known local singing group on Saturday, Feb. 11 at 7 PM at the museum, entitled "Just Desserts". The evening will feature a number of romantic melodies in keeping with Valentine Day including such favorites as: It's My Party, What Kind of Fool Am I, and Anything You Can Do. The event will be directed by Stephanie Rowe. In addition to the musical treats celebrating the occasion, delectable desserts, prepared by the fabulous chefs of the area, will be featured to complement the musical gala. Pictured above are members of the musical group that will provide entertainment that evening. They are, front row: feft to right - Stephanie Rowe (director), Mary Faenza, Cindy Wooten, Bailey Matteson, Aprille Moore; back row: left to right - Mike Wooten, Sara Norcross, Mike Muller, Linda Dunworth, Linda Burns, Paul Faenza. The musical treat with desserts will take place at the Black River Academy Museum at 7 PM on Feb. 11. The museum is located at 14 High Street in Ludlow. Tickets, purchased at the door, are $8 a person or $20 for a family. For information, call 802-228-5050.

January 27, 2012

At Mount Hollywood Studio in Belmont, more than twenty area musicians have recorded original songs written in response to Tropical Storm Irene. At LPCTV Community access television station in Ludlow, staff has been busy editing photos and videos of the historic and devastating event. The resulting CD and DVD are soon to be packaged together under the title "Irene's Wake" and released at two concerts in Ludlow, February 17th and 18th. The keepsake will then be available at area retailers for $20. Proceeds of all sales will be split between the Vermont Flood Relief Fund and the non-profit LPCTV.

Musicians and bands featured on the commemorative CD include Rick Redington and the Luv, Gypsy Reel, The Pleasants, Victor Paul and Guy Burlage of Seabird, Rick Davis, Dank & the Funksticks, and the Mount Holly Folk Club. “We’ve got rock, funk, folk, bluegrass…,” offered Mount Hollywood Studio's Rod Ferrell who has generously donated countless hours to the project. “It’s an eclectic assortment of good, original songs by some really talented Vermont musicians and songwriters.”

In addition to the CD, the commemorative package will include a DVD of photographs and videos of the storm, its damage, and its effect on Vermonters. The DVD will also feature video clips of recording sessions and interviews with the artists. Songs from the CD will be played on the DVD as well.

To celebrate the release of “Irene’s Wake”, five of the bands featured on the CD are gracing two stages in Ludlow, February 17th and 18th. Mark your calendars! On Friday, February 17th at the Ludlow Town Hall Auditorium: Gypsy Reel, The Pleasants, the Salt Ash Serenaders, along with members of the Mount Holly Folk Club and special guests will be performing from 7:00 – 8:30. In unison with the bands, there will also be a showing of the DVD which commemorates the historical flood as it effected our region. Admission is $10 at the door. On Saturday, February 18th at the Outback Nightclub in Ludlow: the volume will be turned up a notch with Rick Redington and the Luv performing along with Dank & the Funkstix. Music start around 9:00. Admission is $10.

Proceeds from the sale of “Irene’s Wake” and related events will be shared between the Vermont Flood Relief Fund and LPCTV – which is currently raising funds for their new facility at the Ludlow Community Center Campus.

The “I am Vermont Strong” commemorative license plate to benefit the Vermont Food Bank and the Vermont Disaster Relief Fund is making its way through the General Assembly for approval. You may recall it being mentioned in the Governor’s State of the State address earlier in the month and appearing on the front page of many papers. On January 26, S-249 passed the full Senate on a unanimous voice vote. It had previously been vetted in the Senate Transportation, Finance and the Appropriations Committees. It now moves to the House of Representatives to be reviewed by committees and then to the House floor for expected passage. Upon passage, it will be sent to the Governor for his signature.

Behind the scenes, literally, the plate is already being produced by our working male prisoners at the Northwest Correctional Center at St Albans in the license plate shop. (This is the same shop that used to be located at the correctional facility in Windsor and run by women prisoners.) These workers had already made 6800 by the 25th and likely will have made the 8,000 requested in the first round by the time you read this. The cost to make the plates is $4.86 and they are being purchased by the Dept. of Motor Vehicles.

The plate which is green, black and white will sell for $25. Eighteen dollars will be for 2011 flood victims via the relief fund, two dollars will be for the food bank and five dollars will go to the DMV. As I understand it, the two people from Rutland who designed the logo and put it on T-shirts to raise funds for victims after Hurricane Irene made the food bank request in exchange for the use of the logo. The goal with the sales is to raise one million dollars.

The plates can be put on the front of cars, or trucks weighing less than 26,000 pounds and must be placed on top of the official front plate. This may be a little tricky but one is required in the law to leave your DMV issued plate in place. They can be on one’s vehicle until June 30, 2014. The plates can be purchased by anyone, in and out of state, and it is believed that many will buy them as souvenirs. They will be sold hopefully by many vendors, and already VT Life magazine has received 1019 pre-orders. Maybe you’ll be able to buy one at your local grocery store. The commemorative plate will be exempt from the sales and use tax.